a big tub filled with warm relaxing bubbles......the giggles of children hiding in the same old places......deep embracing hugs from people you love.....these are the real decorations of a home.
So come on in and let’s “decorate” for a while. Things are far from perfect here, but that’s where the real beauty lies....finding contentment just in the “now”.

Saturday, August 9, 2014

How I Hung The Chandelier In The Tree

I first tried throwing different things with a thin chord attached - up in my tree. Sadly, the only throw I was successful at had to do with my shoulder - as in "throwing it out".

I did get the most height with this wreath. Unfortunately, though, it landed on our roof, in our neighbors yard, in our gutter where it got stuck, and almost on my head. Not

a great plan.

I really didn't want to ask Edward for help, because I knew he would poo-poo the whole "chandelier in the tree" thing anyway. He never likes my ideas in advance - only after they are in place. I knew I was on my own. So, I secretly pondered and pondered and pondered, and after much pondering I gave this a try - and it worked!!!

We have these 3 fiberglass rods that hook together. I can't tell you where to get any - ours were just left here. 3 of them got me to about 18 feet. Not nearly enough.

Then I found this thin piece of wood trim that was small enough to fit snuggly inside the fiberglass pole, but sturdy enough not to break.

I attached a metal eye on the end of the wood, then ran a thin chord through the eye. I tied a piece of metal on the end of the chord and unwound chord the full length of my combined poles - so I could hold it tight. I then lifted all 28+ feet of pole into the air and balanced the pole until I made contact with the tree branch I wanted. I pushed the metal piece over the branch and let it fall down the other side - releasing the chord I was holding tight.

Next, I attached a much stronger rope to the chord and pulled that back up over the branch. Finally, I added some chain to the rope and hung the chandelier. The rest of the rope is wrapped around a concrete pillar, so I can raise and lower the chandelier at will.

2 comments:

Um, wow, I actually think that final solution was genius. In fact, the idea of throwing anything over the branch in the first place was rather intelligent. I would have looked at the branch, thought, "Hmmm. Wish I had a taller ladder." And that would have been the end of that idea (or hubby would have gotten involved because he has an annoyingly useful family trait of never letting a problem go unsolved). I'm proud of you.